Walker Art Center cinema gets a state-of-the-art refit

By |

This Friday, June 22, the Walker Art Center will unveil its newly renovated, state-of-the-art cinema with the Minnesota premiere of the highly original drama Beasts of the Southern Wild, a winner at this year’s Sundance and Cannes film festivals, a film that deserves to be seen on the big screen and one that may end up in some Oscar discussions toward the end of 2012. Tickets for the free screening are already gone, but the film’s Twin Cities theatrical release will start on Friday, July 13 at a Landmark theater. The Walker cinema first opened in 1971 and has had upgrades since then, but none like this: cinephiles will rejoice when they walk in. Continue Reading

“Safety Not Guaranteed” screenwriter Derek Connolly: “It’s best to live in the present”

By |

One of the best films of 2012 so far is the sci-fi romantic comedy Safety Not Guaranteed, a surprise hit at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. It opens Friday, June 15, exclusively at AMC’s Southdale 16 theater. The movie features an intriguing premise based on a real classified ad that was placed in the mid-1990s. When the ad became an Internet fascination and spawned many to wonder whether the ad was a joke or not, it became apparent to screenwriter Derek Connolly (a name you will be hearing more from in the future, perhaps in late 2012), that there was a film idea within this posting, true or not. Continue Reading

“Hysteria” director Tanya Wexler talks about the Victorian origins of the vibrator

By |

After seeing hundreds of films each year—narratives, documentaries, and short films alike, and everything from remakes and/or sequels to original stories—every now and again, you come across a storyline that you never figured you would ever write about. The new romantic comedy from director Tanya Wexner (Ball in the House and Finding North), Hysteria, opening Friday, June 1 at the Edina Cinema, concerns a subject with an interesting history: the female vibrator. Yes, the vibrator—in, no less, a story that takes place in the very peak of Victorian times in London around 1880. Continue Reading

OUT Twin Cities Film Festival has never been timelier

By |

Since 2010, the OUT Twin Cities Film Festival has slowly become a terrific niche film festival in the Twin Cities. What started out as a two-day event covering various LGBTQ topics, mostly through film screenings, has blossomed into a four-day festival filled with films, guest speakers, professional script reading, and musical artists performing at various venues in Minneapolis. Opening on Thursday, May 31 and running through Sunday, June 3, the OUT Twin Cities Film Festival will be held at St. Anthony Main Theatre and features a diverse line-up—including perhaps its strongest film slate in its three-year existence. Continue Reading

The Defenders series: Surprise films lead to unsurprisingly great discussion

By |

On Wednesday, May 16 at the Trylon Microcinema, there will be one question on everyone’s mind: what film will Twin Cities Daily Planet arts editor Jay Gabler unveil for his selection at the 12th “Defenders” screening? While at the moment, I know the title and obviously, so does Jay and the projectionist at the Trylon, aside from the three of us, nobody will know until the lights go down in the theater. Hopefully, everybody will be excited and surprised. Continue Reading

“Men in Black 3,” “The Dictator,” “Moonrise Kingdom,” and more: The summer movie season begins

By |

What’s the definition of a “summer movie”? Not an easy question to answer, but most summer movies usually feature big movie stars (Tom Cruise, Will Smith, Bruce Willis, Charlize Theron) in romantic comedies (Seeking a Friend for the End of the World), big-budget action explosions (The Bourne Legacy), intergalactic aliens attacking earth (Men in Black 3), superheroes based on comic books or graphic novels (The Amazing Spider Man), sequels, prequels, remakes (Total Recall starring Colin Farrell), films looking to become another franchise with sequels and prequels hopefully to follow (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter). Or how about a heavily-advertised animated feature (Ice Age: Continental Drift) or an idea based on a popular board game (Battleship)—and that probably is not even close to covering half of the targeted 100+ films being released this summer. Continue Reading

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival wraps up, bigger than ever—but is bigger better?

By |

The 22-day marathon of MSPIFF winds down with Thursday’s closing night film, the Lebanese dramedy Where Do We Go Now?, which has been receiving acclaim from festivals worldwide. It will surely be a hit and cap off another successful MSPIFF, proving again its appeal the biggest arts events in the Twin Cities every April (and early indications are that the festival broke attendance records). Having the majority of the festival in the five screens of St. Anthony Main has not only improved MSPIFF tremendously but has been one of the driving factors for audiences coming down early, staying later, and often coming back for days and days. Almost as fun as watching the films is stopping at the Aster Café and Pracna during the festival to interact with fellow movie-lovers, restaurant staffers and visiting filmmakers talking about being in the Twin Cities for the first time or about their love of being back here. Continue Reading

MSPIFF week three: Picks and pans

By |

At the halfway point of MSPIFF, the theaters have been packed, audiences have been bouncing from theater to theater—mostly with smiles, some with panicked looks (my guess is, trying to make another screening before it starts)—and there has been plenty of entertainment down at the Aster Café, just down the street from St. Anthony Main Theatre. For the most part, of the 29 titles I’ve seen, most of them have been fairly good. MSPIFF has brought in some titles I didn’t think I’d get a chance to see including two French-Canadian titles over the past weekend: Anne Emond’s sexual charged drama Nuit #1 and Jean-Marc Vallee’s sprawling family drama Café de Flore, both of which will both get released later in the year courtesy of Adopt Films. Continue Reading

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival begins: The best films so far, and picks for the rest of the fest

By |

MSPIFF is off to a rousing start. The sold-out opening night film, The Intouchables, a French comedy, had people chatting at the post-party, with many commenting that it was a definite crowd-pleaser and wondering when the film will return to the Twin Cities. The Intouchables opens in New York and Los Angeles in late May, so a return to the Twin Cities would probably happen in early to mid-June, but will it play at a Landmark Theatre or can the Film Society bring back the hit film for a weeklong run at St. Anthony Main? Continue Reading